Lauryn Hanley is a scholar of ancient Mediterranean religion, language, and landscape. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Classics at the University of Washington, where her dissertation explores the religious and literary significance of caves in ancient Greek thought. Her work draws from archaeological research, close reading of myth and poetics, and phenomenological fieldwork informed by the environmental humanities. At UW, Lauryn has taught Latin and Greek language, vocabulary, and etymology courses, and serves as a peer mentor for new teaching assistants. She co-founded and directed the Simpson Center-funded Textile Studies Graduate Research Cluster and has presented her research at national and regional conferences. Lauryn earned her B.A. with highest honors in Classical Languages, Classical Studies, and History from the University of Texas at Austin.

As a 2025–2026 U.S. Fulbright Student Researcher, Lauryn will conduct fieldwork in Greece for her dissertation, focusing on the ritual and symbolic role of caves in Greek religious experience and myth. Her project investigates how ancient Greek sacred landscapes shaped religious imagination and how lived experience in caves influenced their mythopoetic representations. While in Greece, she will visit key cave sites tied to myth and cult, conduct archival research, and collaborate with Greek archaeologists and scholars of ancient religion. Her work aims to bridge literary, archaeological, and experiential perspectives to better understand ancient interactions with natural space.